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The ABA BlogMon, 19 Mar 2018 12:06:00 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.462909827Blog Birding #357http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-357.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-357.html#respondMon, 19 Mar 2018 12:00:40 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22784The origin of American Flamingos in Florida, with its myriad zoos and animal parks, has always been a little bit of a mystery, but as Liz Langley writes in National Geographic, the evidence increasingly suggests that they are naturally occurring.

In the study, published recently in The Condor: Ornithological Applications, the authors pored over historical [read more...]]]>

The origin of American Flamingos in Florida, with its myriad zoos and animal parks, has always been a little bit of a mystery, but as Liz Langley writes in National Geographic, the evidence increasingly suggests that they are naturally occurring.

In the study, published recently in The Condor: Ornithological Applications, the authors pored over historical and museum records that suggest flamingos are native to Florida. For example, the scientists found a reference to four flamingo egg specimens from the 1880s, indicating the birds nested in the state at that time.

With all of these tools, one would think the information is readily available to all or most. Not so fast. These tools while easy for some might be difficult for others for a variety of reasons. More importantly, I have found that many users will not crossover – meaning Facebook users may not use Twitter, text messages will not make it outside of the recipients and we end up with stovepiping. The end results are that there are often reports that never make their way to the wider audience until it is too late. This has frustrated many and once again, we are faced with the dilemma of data not being made available to everyone in a timely manner. Sounds familiar?

The conflict between Spotted Owls and Barred Owls in the Pacific Northwest is one that plays out not only in the second-growth forests of the region, but increasingly in courtrooms as well, as Jason Crotty writes at 10,000 Birds.

Although most of the threats to the Spotted Owl relate to its dwindling old growth forest habitat, it also faces potential threats from another bird. The Barred Owl has greatly expanded its range, such that it is now common in the Pacific Northwest. The Barred Owl is larger and more adaptable and it appears to out-compete Spotted Owl for food and other resources, likely causing declines in Spotted Owl populations. Indeed, due to dramatic increase, Barred Owls can outnumber Spotted Owls in their shared habitats.

We’ve known for some time that Common Ravens are fascinating and complex birds. New research, summarized at Phys.Org, suggests that they are saying much more in their various croaks and gurgles than we might have otherwise realized.

Researchers at the University of Vienna and the University of Cambridge found that vocal signals emitted by ravens to alert conspecifics to feeding sites varied in frequency, call duration and amplitude, according to their age and sex. These differences may enable ravens to extract information about the caller and use this knowledge to aid in decision-making processes.

In 1985, the subspecies of Sharp-shinned Hawk found only in Puerto Rico, Accipiter striatus venator, was estimated to have a population of 240 birds. In 1994, it was listed as endangered throughout its range by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. When the Peregrine Fund’s team of biologists surveyed the population in 2017, they found 75 birds comprising 16 breeding pairs in four locations on the island.

Last week, Peregrine Fund biologists returned from the island and reported that after Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the population is down to just 19 individual birds.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-357.html/feed022784Rare Bird Alert: March 16, 2018http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/rare-bird-alert-march-16-2018.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/rare-bird-alert-march-16-2018.html#respondFri, 16 Mar 2018 12:00:14 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22767Continuing rarities in the ABA include many of our old friends from the winter, most notably the ABA 1st Mistle Thrush in New Brunswick, which is amazingly still hanging around. Both Tamaulipas Crow (ABA Code 4) and Blue Bunting (4) are still being seen in south Texas, with the former being seen at a couple [read more...]]]>Continuing rarities in the ABA include many of our old friends from the winter, most notably the ABA 1st Mistle Thrush in New Brunswick, which is amazingly still hanging around. Both Tamaulipas Crow (ABA Code 4) and Blue Bunting (4) are still being seen in south Texas, with the former being seen at a couple new sites. In California, Nazca Booby (4) and Black-tailed Gull (4) were reported this week, and in Arizona, both a Sinaloa Wren (5) and a Streak-backed Oriole (4) continue.

Almost never seen as a vagrant, Lawrence’s Goldfinch can be difficult to find even in places where it is supposed to be. So one in Comanche, Oklahoma, is a huge surprise. Not only is it a 1st state record, but it is the farthest east record of this flashy finch.

Photo: Larry Mays/Macaulay Library

Georgia also had a 1st this week, in a nice male Mountain Bluebird in Richmond this week. Also noteworthy for Georgia, though not a state 1st, was a Snowy Plover in Camden.

And in Arizona, the Tufted Flycatchers (4) have returned, now in two different locations in Cochise.

—=====—

Omissions and errors are not intended, but if you find any please message blog AT aba.org and I will try to fix them as soon as possible. This post is meant to be an account of the most recently reported birds. Continuing birds not mentioned are likely included in previous editions listed here. Place names written in italics refer to counties/parishes.

Readers should note that none of these reports has yet been vetted by a records committee. All birders are urged to submit documentation of rare sightings to the appropriate state or provincial committees. For full analysis of these and other bird observations, subscribe to North American Birds <aba.org/nab>, the richly illustrated journal of ornithological record published by the ABA.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/rare-bird-alert-march-16-2018.html/feed022767Help the ABA-Leica Subadult Wheatears Get Over The Top!http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/help-the-aba-leica-subadult-wheatears-get-over-the-top.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/help-the-aba-leica-subadult-wheatears-get-over-the-top.html#respondThu, 15 Mar 2018 12:00:19 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22761The ABA-Leica Subadult Wheatears, competing this year’s Champions of the Flyway event in southern Israel, are very very close to their goal and need your help to get them over the top!

Every dollar raised goes to help BirdLife International put a stop to illegal bird trapping and hunting around the Mediterranean, one of [read more...]]]>

The ABA-Leica Subadult Wheatears, competing this year’s Champions of the Flyway event in southern Israel, are very very close to their goal and need your help to get them over the top!

Every dollar raised goes to help BirdLife International put a stop to illegal bird trapping and hunting around the Mediterranean, one of the Old World’s most pressing bird conservation issues and arguably one of the most important bird conservation issues on the planet.

It can be hard for birders in North America to appreciate the scale of this issue. We are quite lucky that the Migratory Bird Conservation Act, now in its 100th year in 2018, was enacted in time to prevent this sort of whole-scale slaughter on our continent. But though we worry less about hunting and trapping, the memory of the Passenger Pigeon and the Carolina Parakeet still loom large in our collective conscience. It’s not too much of a stretch to say that that history is repeating itself in Europe and Africa. And the Champions of the Flyway, in addition to being an amazing bird race, is also an extremely effective fundraiser for programs looking to put a stop to it.

So do your part, and help out a team of young American birders besides.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/help-the-aba-leica-subadult-wheatears-get-over-the-top.html/feed022761#ABArare – Tufted Flycatcher – Arizonahttp://blog.aba.org/2018/03/abarare-tufted-flycatcher-arizona-2.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/abarare-tufted-flycatcher-arizona-2.html#commentsWed, 14 Mar 2018 12:00:52 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22754It was not so long ago that Tufted Flycatcher (ABA Code 4) was among the rarest birds north of the Mexican border, but in recent years it has become annual in Arizona, even attempting to breed. That trend continues in 2018 where Tufted Flycatchers have been reported in the last week at two different sites [read more...]]]>It was not so long ago that Tufted Flycatcher (ABA Code 4) was among the rarest birds north of the Mexican border, but in recent years it has become annual in Arizona, even attempting to breed. That trend continues in 2018 where Tufted Flycatchers have been reported in the last week at two different sites where they have been recorded in the past, Ramsey Canyon and Carr Canyon, both in Cochise County, Arizona.

This Tufted Flycatcher was photographed in Carr Canyon, where it is one of two birds discovered last week. A third bird has since been found in Ramsey Canyon as well. Photo: Barry McKenzie

The Carr Canyon birds were found at Reef Townsite Campground, in the Coronado National Forest south of Sierra Vista on Carr Canyon Road. Beware that passage on that road is difficult and a high-clearance vehicle is recommended.

The Ramsey Canyon birds are in the Upper Canyon, along the Hamburg trail about 1/3 mile past the Brown Canyon trail junction. Birders should note that the hike is a difficult one, and should prepare adequate time and resources to make it all the way there and back should they attempt to find this bird.

As mentioned above, this is the 11th or so record of this species in the ABA Area, and it has been annual in recent years. Since the first record in Big Bend National Park in November 1991, it has been several times in Arizona, typically in the southeast corner but as far north as Mohave, and three additional times in Texas (Pecos 1993, Brewster 2010-11, Kleberg 2014).

When birders and state Bird Records Committees speak of a “state list” or a “first state record” – they are referring to bird species that have
been recorded within a state’s official legal boundaries, as determined by U.S. law and court decisions. Whether on land or at sea, the legal borders of a state (or county or city) and its waters *must* be used in determining where a bird record is assigned. Otherwise it’s not truly a “state list” in any real / official capacity.

There has been considerable discussion (and controversy) in recent years about state pelagic birding borders. The American Birding
Association, eBird, and some state Bird Records Committees recognize what is known as the “closest point of land rule”. This means that an offshore bird record from a given location / set of coordinates lies within the borders of the state that controls the closest point of land to those coordinates. In U.S. law and international law, this is known as “the principle of equidistance” – i.e. offshore borders consist of a series of points that are equidistant from the closest points of land in the two neighboring states, nations, etc.

Other state Bird Records Committees recognize different borders – some consisting of east-west lines extended from their coastal land borders, others consisting of a variety of formulas. Unfortunately, this second group of Bird Records Committees are in error by not following their respective states’ legal/official offshore borders. Though most birders do not know it: U.S. law, U.S. courts, and U.S. federal agencies use the principle of equidistance (AKA closest point of land) to determine offshore state boundaries. The U.S. Supreme Court has issued repeated opinions that this principle is to be used to determine offshore state boundaries (both in state waters and federal waters).

Pelagic Boundaries as determined by closest point of land.

Background: according to U.S. law, states only control waters between 0 and 3 miles from shore. These are known as “State Submerged Lands” and are commonly referred to as “state waters” – they were reaffirmed in the Submerged Lands Act of 1953. The exceptions are
Texas and the west coast of Florida, where State jurisdiction extends from the coastline to 10.066 miles into the Gulf of Mexico. An offshore border / boundary between state waters (0-3 miles from shore) is known as a “lateral seaward boundary“.

Waters in the 200-mile US Exclusive Economic Zone lying seaward of state coastal waters are under U.S. federal jurisdiction – as reaffirmed in the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. While resources from these 3-200 mile offshore waters are still assigned to states (examples: oil & gas royalty revenue, fisheries revenue, wind energy fees and royalties, shipwrecks, reefs, etc.), the federal government has jurisdiction there and has decision-making authority on boundaries between states. These federally-determined offshore state boundaries from 3-200 miles are known as
“Offshore Administrative Boundaries“.

Herald (Trindade) Petrel, photo by Tom Johnson, used with permission. A state first, but for GA or SC?

Another term used in discussions of offshore boundaries is “baseline” – that means the officially-recognized coastline (which can shift over the years, particularly around river mouths and inlets). The U.S. Government periodically updates the baseline for the entire U.S. coast (to
reflect changes to the coastline and to offshore islands).

Due to disputes among the states over offshore boundaries in federal waters: the federal Minerals Management Service, National Ocean Service, and State Department developed an updated nationwide baseline and applied the ‘principle of equidistance’ to it to produce an updated set of offshore boundaries seaward of the Submerged Lands Act’s state waters (3-200 miles offshore). These updated offshore state boundaries, their methodology, and helpful background information (including maps) were published in the Federal Register in 2006:

* From the site linked, note this paragraph especially:

“The U.S. Baseline Committee has firmly established equidistance as the principle for domestic and international boundaries. The President formed the Committee in 1970 to resolve Federal baseline points from which to establish various jurisdictional and boundary issues, such as Federal/State boundary points and the extent of the territorial sea. The Committee has directed the Department of the Interior and all other agencies to apply this standard in dealings with coastal states and for international purposes.”

In terms of state waters (0-3 miles from shore):

Boundaries between state offshore waters (AKA lateral seaward boundaries) have been litigated many times. Texas v. Louisiana (1976) was a
noteworthy case argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, as was Georgia v. South Carolina (1990). In both cases (and others), the Supreme Court upheld the principle of equidistance for determining the lateral seaward boundary (border between state waters). It should be noted that these two specific decisions only dealt with the lateral seaward boundary – i.e. the localized area around those states’ borders, out to the limit of state waters.

The following web application from NOAA is a neat tool for displaying states’ offshore boundaries (in both state and federal waters):
http://csc.noaa.gov/mmcviewer/

In addition to offshore borders, it can show all kinds of GIS layers overlaid on a marine map surrounding North America. To see the
individual GIS layer checkboxes, you have to hit the little “+” buttons to expand the categories and reveal the checkboxes. Note: the NOAA application requires Adobe Flash player.

A state-first Fea’s Petrel seen at the Charleston Bump, but for SC or GA? photo by Nate Dias

You can display all the LEGAL + OFFICIAL state offshore borders by selecting 1) the Submerged Lands Act Boundaries, 2) the 200 nm EEZ boundary, 3) the Federal OCS Administrative boundaries and 4) the lateral seaward boundaries. You will need to zoom in a good bit to see the state waters and their boundaries 0-3 miles from shore.

So to recap: It is self-evident that a state bird list can only consist of birds recorded within a state’s legally defined boundaries (whether on land or at sea). It should also be self-evident that a Bird Records Committee cannot change a state’s legally established boundaries at sea (AKA pelagic borders) any more than it can change a state’s legally established borders on land. Since U.S. law stipulates that boundaries from 3-200 miles offshore are assigned to states via the principle of equidistance (closest point of land rule), then any bird records committee who fails to use this yardstick is at odds with the law and U.S. government policy (by which states are bound to observe).

Bottom line: states (and therefore state BRCs) have no say in determining their boundaries in federal waters. State waters and their boundaries are also a matter of law and have been thoroughly enumerated over the years. So any BRC pronouncements about offshore boundaries are moot. Such boundaries are already well-established, clearly defined, and a matter of law (even if the birding community is largely unaware of such facts). Therefore all pelagic bird records should be submitted to the BRC of the state with jurisdiction over the nearest point of land.

Besides being legally correct, an added benefit of the closest point of land rule is that it is very simple and easy to apply, and it yields unambiguous results. Coming to grips with states’ true + legal pelagic borders will undoubtedly cause angst among birders from certain states who are on the short end of the law. But states like Georgia and Rhode Island are still in much better seabirding shape than Nebraska.

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Nate Dias, of Charleston, South Carolina, is SC’s top lister (life list and big year), has been a pelagic birder since the 1980s, and has organized pelagic trips out of Charleston off and on since the early 1990s. His “day jobs” have included gigs as MIS Director for the Democratic National Committee, designing secure systems and networks for Wells Fargo Bank, and system engineering roles at multiple dot-coms. He is also the director of the Cape Romain Bird Observatory, member of multiple bird conservation working groups, past member of the SC BRC, and past SC Reviewer for project eBird.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/open-mic-on-east-coast-pelagic-boundaries.html/feed37507Blog Birding #356http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-356.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-356.html#respondMon, 12 Mar 2018 12:00:23 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22750Yes yard-listing can be fun, but it’s limited. Steve Tucker at Bourbon, Bastards, and Birds is here to introduce to you the idea of the five-mile radius.

The idea (my interpretation) is that you should bird a lot within your 5MR, because almost everyone should be birding more locally than they already are. Less fuel [read more...]]]>

The idea (my interpretation) is that you should bird a lot within your 5MR, because almost everyone should be birding more locally than they already are. Less fuel burned, less time in the car, less going to the same old places where everyone else goes. If you think it is fun to get to know the birds of your county (let’s face it, that is definitely your idea of a good time), then just think of the joy and ecstasy of mastering the status and distribution of birds within 5 miles of where you live! Plus it gets you exploring more, and what can be more rewarding than finding a gem of a hotspot or a gem of a rarity in your own backyard, so to speak?

The ABA’s newest endemic species, the Cassia Crossbill, is a mystery to many on the continent. At Ornithologi, Bryce Robinson looks to shed a little light.

The Cassia Crossbill represents our continued refinement of understanding the natural world. How peculiar it seems that in the 21st century, while beginning to recognize and understand incipient speciation in some taxa, we are also finding well established independent evolutionary lineages that have until now gone unnoticed. Even more peculiar is that the Cassia Crossbill is certainly not restricted to a place where ornithologists and bird enthusiasts rarely visit. They breed in areas with extensive road networks and occupy ranges with nearly year round access. My point is that we certainly haven’t missed them, we have only overlooked them. I don’t consider this an embarrassment, I find it extremely exciting. How many other patterns such as this have we yet to notice?

The idyllic setting for nesting songbirds in our backyards is one filled with native plants, according to research published last summer in Biological Conservation. Desirée Narango, a graduate student at the University of Delaware and lead author of the study, found that yards with more native trees and shrubs have more Carolina Chickadees, southern cousins to Black-capped Chickadees.

I envisioned her struggling beneath a Cooper’s or perhaps a sharp-shinned hawk, held down while her wings were plucked nearly bald. Somehow, she must have struggled free and gotten away. I couldn’t imagine how, unless she hid in dense cover. Even that would be a weak defense against an accipiter; they tend to go in feet first after prey. For all I know, it happened right here, where the little male sharp-shinned hawk who’s been hunting the yard this winter likes to hang out.

My parents were not birders. At that time, my parents could only identify maybe two or three bird species. They were not able to mentor me, so I ended up teaching myself about birds and birding. My parents constantly took me to bookstores to purchase bird books. As I got older, I spent time enjoying my two favorite hobbies: reading books and birding. I learned a lot about birds and wanted to share with everyone around me. So I started teaching my friends and community about birds and birding. I knew as a nine-year-old that I loved teaching my fellow Texans and others about birds and birding.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/blog-birding-356.html/feed022750Rare Bird Alert: March 9, 2018http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/rare-bird-alert-march-9-2018.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/rare-bird-alert-march-9-2018.html#respondFri, 09 Mar 2018 13:00:09 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22741The holding pattern we’d been in with regard to unusual vagrants seems to be breaking a little as spring moves along. The southern tier of the ABA Area is seeing the return of early migrants like Purple Martins and Osprey, moving northwards little by little every day. There are still some continuing rarities that are [read more...]]]>The holding pattern we’d been in with regard to unusual vagrants seems to be breaking a little as spring moves along. The southern tier of the ABA Area is seeing the return of early migrants like Purple Martins and Osprey, moving northwards little by little every day. There are still some continuing rarities that are not moving much, including the ABA 1st Mistle Thrush in New Brunswick, well into its fourth month in Miramichi. The male Blue Bunting (ABA Code 4) is still in south Texas, and looking sharper every week. After a couple weeks of no reports (at least to eBird), the Streak-backed Oriole (4) in Tucson, Arizona, was noted again. Just to the south, the Sinaloa Wren (5) continues. In California, the Black-tailed Gull (4), a couple Nazca Boobies (4), and the Garganey (4) are all staying put. And a Pink-footed Goose (4) continues in New York.

One of the less common western vagrants to the east, a Lark Bunting was discovered in Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, which has to go down as one of the most productive urban birding sites in the ABA Area.

One of the stranger reports from the period came from Alabama, and no, it wasn’t a yellow cardinal. A Greater Roadrunner was photographed in Shelby, which would represent a 1st record for the state as well as, maybe more notably, a 1st record east of the Mississippi River. There are obviously questions about how a bird that doesn’t fly much crossed such an imposing physical barrier, but it’s worth noting that roadrunners have greatly expanded their range eastward in recent years, with records in Arkansas, at least, within sight of the river.

Perhaps interesting in light of the previous record, a White-tailed Kite was seen in Benton, Mississippi, last week.

A third southwestern species in the southeast, a Sage Thrasher was discovered in Calcasieu, Louisiana.

And Arizona’s 3rd record of Carolina Wren was found at Patagonia State Park in Santa Cruz.

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Omissions and errors are not intended, but if you find any please message blog AT aba.org and I will try to fix them as soon as possible. This post is meant to be an account of the most recently reported birds. Continuing birds not mentioned are likely included in previous editions listed here. Place names written in italics refer to counties/parishes.

Readers should note that none of these reports has yet been vetted by a records committee. All birders are urged to submit documentation of rare sightings to the appropriate state or provincial committees. For full analysis of these and other bird observations, subscribe to North American Birds <aba.org/nab>, the richly illustrated journal of ornithological record published by the ABA.

Jim Carpenter opened the very first Wild Birds Unlimited store near his home in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1981. At the time it was one of very few bird specific retail outlets in the country. Since then, Wild Birds Unlimited has grown to include more than 300 stores across the US and Canada. It is [read more...]]]>

Jim Carpenter opened the very first Wild Birds Unlimited store near his home in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1981. At the time it was one of very few bird specific retail outlets in the country. Since then, Wild Birds Unlimited has grown to include more than 300 stores across the US and Canada. It is without doubt the premier name in wild bird retail. His new book, The Joy of Birdfeeding, The Essential Guide to Attracting and Feeding our Backyard Birds, was published late last year by Scott & Nix. Jim joins me to talk about how Wild Birds Unlimited came to be, and what he thinks are the most important things people should know about feeding birds.

Also, Greg Neise and Ted Floyd are back to talk about the most magical sounds of spring, duck songs. Or rather, the things that ducks do that aren’t quacks.

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/american-birding-podcast-the-joy-of-birdfeeding-with-jim-carpenter.html/feed022733Travel with the ABA in 2018!http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/travel-with-the-aba-in-2018.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/travel-with-the-aba-in-2018.html#respondWed, 07 Mar 2018 14:52:45 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22724The ABA has a full schedule of events planned for 2018 and beyond. Come and join us for amazing birding and great fellowship with fellow ABA members at sites around the ABA Area and world.

We have some events in the near future that have some spots available for birders who are willing and able [read more...]]]>

The ABA has a full schedule of events planned for 2018 and beyond. Come and join us for amazing birding and great fellowship with fellow ABA members at sites around the ABA Area and world.

We have some events in the near future that have some spots available for birders who are willing and able to act of short notice!

ABA Camp Colorado and Camp Avocet

5 spots – Camp Colorado 1: June 23 – June 29, 2018

2 spots – Camp Colorado 2: July 3 – July 9, 2018

5 spots – Camp Avocet: July 28 – August 3, 2018

The ABA’s young birder camps continue to be a part of out legacy of which we are very proud. Both Camp Avocet in Delaware and Camp Colorado in, well, Colorado, have a few spots remaining for 2018. If you are a young birder or you know a young birder who might benefit from this opportunity to bird with peers from around the ABA Area under the guidance of expert leaders, let them know! This is a life-changing opportunity and we want as many young birders as possible to participate.

Delaware Bay is famous for its horseshoe crabs and the migrating shorebirds that they attract. Delaware also happens to be in our own backyard and a place that ABA Staff know very well. Join us for a wonderful long birding weekend amidst the magic of tens of thousands of Red Knots, Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings, and more!

Florida offers some of the most exciting birding in the ABA Area, especially in spring when the possibility of Caribbean rarities is highest. We’ll be hitting all the hotspots, from countable exotics in Miami to the amazing Everglades to the Florida Keys. Come join us!

Cuba is hot right now in birding circles, and for good reason. The island nation offers tropical birding with trogons, parakeets, and flamingos not more than an hour’s flight south of Miami. And best of all, you get to bird with your humble blogmaster, me! Come join me for what is sure to be an amazing trip to this unique nation with spectacular birds!

]]>http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/travel-with-the-aba-in-2018.html/feed0227242018 AOS Classification Committee Proposals, Part 2http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/2018-aos-classification-committee-proposals-part-2.html
http://blog.aba.org/2018/03/2018-aos-classification-committee-proposals-part-2.html#respondTue, 06 Mar 2018 13:00:35 +0000http://blog.aba.org/?p=22711This is the second batch of bird taxonomy proposals submitted to the American Ornithological Society’s North and Middle America Classification Committee, the volunteer group of ornithologists who make the split, lump, and name-change decisions that influence the ABA Checklist and our field guides.

Per usual, it’s important to note that these are just proposals and [read more...]]]>

This is the second batch of bird taxonomy proposals submitted to the American Ornithological Society’s North and Middle America Classification Committee, the volunteer group of ornithologists who make the split, lump, and name-change decisions that influence the ABA Checklist and our field guides.

Per usual, it’s important to note that these are just proposals and the committee has yet to vote on them formally. There are some that are unlikely to make the cut for whatever reason, but in the interests of keeping an eye on the world of bird taxonomy as it exists from year to year we’ll include all of them here regardless of how likely or likely they might be.

This post will only mention those changes that affect the ABA Area, but if you’re interested in the whole list including birds found in Middle America – the committee’s jurisdiction includes all of the North America south to Panama – please refer to the official list of proposals at the AOS’s website (.pdf).

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Split Pacific Swift Apus pacificus into four species

Pacific Swift is a common and highly migratory species found primarily in east Asia. It has occurred in the ABA Area on a handful of occasions, mostly in western Alaska but with a few records from the Gulf of Alaska and one in Yukon Territory. The species consists of four subspecies, considered by some authorities to be separate species. All North American records are presumed to be the nominate subspecies and a split would not, then, result in a new species on the ABA List.

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Restore Canada Jay as the English name of Perisoreus canadensis

One of the more interesting proposals this time around, the proposal claims that “Canada Jay” was listed as a vernacular name of the species known now as Gray Jay, or at least was the name given to the nominate subspecies of Perisoreus canadensis. The impetus for this change is, of course, the Royal Canadian Geographic Society’s two year effort to officially designate Gray Jay as Canada’s national bird, and a return to the name Canada Jay certainly makes that job a little easier from a public relations perspective. The justification for the name change was called into question by Rick Wright in a blog post here, though this proposal does shed some light onto the origin of some of the AOS’s naming convention rules and rightly hits them on some confusing 1950’s typography.

Given the very real possibility that Canada, at least in the official government capacity, may go ahead and call the bird Canada Jay regardless of the AOS’s decision, there seems to be at least some interest in going ahead with the name change to prevent two nations from being divided by whiskyjack–or is it whiskeyjack? That’s another potential can of worms.

Consisting of Jaegers and Skuas, all members of the family Stercorariidae are currently included in the genus Stercorarius despite the obvious plumage differences between the larger, block-tailed skuas and the smaller, fancy-tailed jaegers. It was not so long ago, however, that the former had their own genus, Catharacta. This proposal resurrects the old Catharacta genus for the brown skuas and Pomarine Jaeger–which is more skua than “jaeger” anyway–with the smallest two, Parasitic and Long-tailed, retained in Stercorarius.

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Split Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) into two species

Unknown to most North American birders, the familiar Red-eyed Vireo consists of two groups, a migratory population well-known to birders in the eastern part of the continent, and a more or less non-migratory population in South America known as the chivi group. The two groups overlap in the winter when North American breeding birds migrate south. Though previous studies had determined the two groups to be conspecific, new research using more sophisticated tools has found that the chivi birds are more closely related to Black-whiskered Vireo than migratory Red-eyes and thus, the two should be split with the South American birds elevated to Chivi Vireo. This would not result in a new species on the ABA Checklist, but AOS convention necessitates that new names be given to each daughter species. Even so, it seems unlikely that the committee would abandon the descriptive and well-known Red-eyed Vireo for North American birds.

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Add Tadorna tadorna (Common Shelduck) to the Checklist

Add three species to the U.S. list

These represent the expected “housekeeping” proposals that align the AOS Check-list with the ABA Checklist. Common Shelduck was recently added to the ABA Checklist as a naturally occurring species based primarily on a record from Newfoundland, but in subsequent years it has turned out to be a rare, but reliable, vagrant to New England and eastern Canada. The second proposal adds Amethyst-throated Hummingbird, Pine Flycatcher, and Cuban Vireo to the United States list based on records from Texas, Arizona, and Florida, respectively.

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Change the English names of the two species of Gallinula that occur in our area

It certainly seems odd and unnecessarily confusing for Common Gallinule and Common Moorhen to go by such different common names when the two species are nearly identical in appearance and behavior. The former is a common marsh bird in the southern part of the ABA Area through most of South America and the latter is its Eurasian counterpart, represented in North America by a single vagrant record from western Alaska. This proposal suggests, as a way to solve that problem, changing the name Common Gallinule to “American Moorhen” and Common Moorhen to “Eurasian Moorhen”, which not only neatly illustrates the similarities between those two species but also leaves the name “gallinule” for the rather different Porphyrio rails like Purple Gallinule. Though it does beg the question, why would we have moorhens in North America when we don’t have moorlands?

Proposals to the AOS can generally be broken down into three categories–names, splits/lumps and reorganization, with this an example of the last. The pied woodpeckers of genus Picoides are familiar feeder visitors for birders across the continent, and are the latest to come under the genetic knife with only the bizarre Three-toed and Black-backed Woodpeckers coming out unscathed. This research underlying this proposal finds our woodpeckers split into two major groups which are not that closely related. The proposal resurrects two retired genera, Leuconotopicus and Dryobates, with Red-cockaded, Arizona, Hairy, and White-headed in the former and Nuttall’s, Downy, and Ladder-backed in the latter, to deal with it.

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Split the storm-petrels (Hydrobatidae) into two families

It’s probably too generous to say that tubenose taxonomy is confusing; confounding might be a better description. Storm-petrels have long been considered together in one large family, but recent research suggests that short-legged, mostly Northern Hemisphere breeding birds and the long-legged, mostly Southern Hemisphere breeding birds deserve to be considered separately, though the specifics have not yet been agreed upon. Most storm-petrels in the ABA Area will remain in Hydrobatidae, but three, common Wilson’s Storm-Petrel, the rarer White-faced Storm-Petrel, and the very rare Black-bellied Storm-Petrel, would move to Oceanitidae.

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The full list, including background information and recommendations is available here (.pdf). We’ll look at other proposal packets as they come, and post the results of the voting when we see them this summer.